Hazmat scare restricts parts of Kaiser Hospital

SAN DIEGO – Kaiser Hospital's emergency room in Allied Gardens and an administrative building on Murphy Canyon Road had limited access Monday afternoon after more than two dozen people were exposed to an unknown white powder, authorities said.

The powdery substance is believed to have come from an envelope sent to the hospital's administrative building on Murphy Canyon Road. A woman in the mail room opened the envelope about noon and got some of the powder on her arm, said Maurice Luque, a San Diego Fire-Rescue Department spokesman.

She washed off the powder in a bathroom, but said she felt a burning sensation afterward, he said.

The woman came into contact with five co-workers in the building and the group decided to go to the hospital on Zion Road in Allied Gardens to be checked. They drove in separate cars and entered through the emergency room and an occupational services entrance, Luque said.

A total of 26 people, including the woman, her co-workers, the drivers in the group and hospital patients, employees and visitors were exposed, he said.

Hazardous material crews went to the hospital and the administrative building about 12:30 p.m. to investigate a substance. The first floor of the administrative building, where the mail room is, was cleared, said Casey Hart, a Kaiser spokeswoman. Employees working on the building's three top floors were kept in the building on lockdown while crews checked the bottom floor.

Hazardous materials crews said they could not find the envelope, which had been tossed in the trash. They took air samples, which did not show any hazardous materials existed, Luque said.

The hospital restricted access to the emergency room and occupational services for 45 minutes. Patients at the hospital were also monitored and given limited access to the hospital until 3 p.m. to ensure no other people were exposed, Hart said.

Luque said no threats have been made to the hospital and the incident does not appear to be a hoax.

“What may have happened was that paper dust from all the envelopes may have collected on that envelope,” Luque said. “Or, cornstarch used for the automated letter-opening machine may have collected on the envelope.”

All people exposed were checked but none needed medical attention, Luque said.